Up to 100 claims a month generated by National Employers Mutual Fund
Insurers are seeing a surge in claims from former industrial workers claiming damage to their hearing, Allianz says.
Allianz divisional claims manager Roy Hebburn said the employers’ liability claims are based around noise-induced deafness.
Hebburn said: “Health and safety has improved enormously. Exposure to noise should not be a big issue; these are historical claims going back some time.”
He said the National Employers Mutual Fund – an Allianz run-off company – is generating around 100 claims a month.
Claims are projected to continue until 2030.
Recent landmark legal rulings in favour of those suffering from noise-induced deafness have paved the way for increased claims, alongside an increased appetite from lawyers to take up the cases, he said.
In other claims areas, Hebburn revealed that Allianz has recruited former credit hire staff to help combat claims for replacement vehicles.
Hebburn said: “We have recruited from large credit hire operators to ensure that we can overlay their knowledge of the credit hire market with good insurance skills.”
He said insurers not recruiting from the credit hire space were missing out. Allianz has obtained in-depth information on individual credit hire companies to fight back against overcharging.
“If they are not exploiting those opportunities or not strengthening their claims-handling capability, I would suggest it is to their detriment,” he said.
